NH Politics

Wednesday was Organization Day for the New Hampshire Legislature, when all 400 members of the House of Representatives gather for the first time since being elected. Reporter Hannah McCarthy spoke to three brand-new reps about their decision to run.

The state legislature chose its leadership this week, election laws are up for examination, and Manchester has selected a new police commissioner, NH1 News Anchor Charlie Sherman, which has many people debating potential conflicts of interest. We discuss all of this and more. GUESTS: Dean Spiliotes - Civic scholar in the School of Arts and Sciences at SNHU and author of the website NH Political Capital. Jeff Feingold - Editor of New Hampshire Business...

After winning the support of the full New Hampshire House, Republican Rep. Shawn Jasper is set to serve another term as House Speaker. And unlike the last contest for speaker, this year's election went largely as expected.

Heading into November, New Hampshire Democrats talked a big game when it came to their hopes for retaking control of the state Senate . But when the Republicans ended up maintaining the same 14-10 margin they’ve held for the past two years, Democrats placed at least part of the blame for their losses on gerrymandered district lines . As it turns out, they might have a point.

State lawmakers will chose the next Speaker of the New Hampshire House of Representatives Wednesday. Current Speaker Shawn Jasper looks in good position to keep his speaker’s gavel, with Republicans holding a solid majority in the House.

President-Elect Trump's statement that "massive voter fraud" occurred in New Hampshire this election has been widely rejected by state officials. But, the issue itself, of the potential for voter fraud, has gained a lot of attention in recent years. We discuss New Hampshire's ballot system.

A four-way fight for House Speaker requires two rounds of voting. Republicans look to tighten voting laws. And l awmakers in the U.S. House pass a bill setting aside $1 billion for states battling the heroin and opioid addiction crisis.

2016 was a mixed bag for New Hampshire Republicans. The party’s top elected official, Senator Kelly Ayotte, lost her seat to Governor Hassan. But Chris Sununu’s win over fellow executive councilor Colin Van Ostern gave the GOP the Governor’s office for the first time in a dozen years.

Democrats are doing some soul searching after this election season – not only because of their loss in the Presidential race but because they lost several governorships, including in New Hampshire, capping several years of state-level losses nationwide. I think that’s a big reason why President-elect Trump won is because people are so despondent about government’s seeming inability to get things done that they throw their arms up and decide to go in a very different direction from...

New state representatives got a crash course in lawmaking on Tuesday and Wednesday. In preparation for the 2017 legislation session, representatives-elect crowded into a large room in Concord's Legislative Office Building. One of the incumbents tasked with teaching the newcomers — Rep. Tara Sad — made things interesting, acting out the process of drafting a bill. "I have a really good idea for a bill," Sad said, playacting to Jill Sieveking, Director of Legislative Office Services. "But I don...

Raymond Buckley, the longtime leader of New Hampshire’s Democratic party, is now running to be his party’s national chairman. Buckley may lack the name recognition of some of his potential rivals, who include a member of congress, a former presidential candidate and a current cabinet secretary.

New Hampshire polling places were under plenty of scrutiny on Election Day. The attorney general’s office dispatched 50 people to polling locations across the state to keep an eye out for problems. The U.S. Department of Justice had its own Election Day hotline set up to field questions and potential complaints. Officials in the Secretary of State’s office, meanwhile, also kept an eye out for issues. And, despite what President-Elect Donald Trump tweeted Sunday night , nowhere is there any evidence that large groups of people were voting illegally in New Hampshire.

For the first time in fourteen years, New Hampshire Democrats lost the governorship to Republicans, who also held onto the legislature. These trends are playing out at statehouses around the country, with Democrats now controlling the smallest number of legislatures, ever.

New Hampshire’s Community College system asked lawmakers for an increase in state funding at a budget hearing in Concord today. College officials say the increase is needed to avoid a hike in tuition. Officials with the state Community College system are asking for about 49 million dollars for next fiscal year and 52.5 million for the year after. That’s up from their current annual budget of 44 million dollars. Community College System Chancellor, Ross Gittell says the increase would allow...

Governor-elect Chris Sununu sat down with Morning Edition host Rick Ganley Thursday for his first interview with NHPR since last week's election. Listen to the full interview here, or read some excerpts from the interview below that will be added throughout the morning. One of the first decisions you made since the election has to do with your transition team. You named Jamie Burnett – a registered lobbyist here in New Hampshire – as co-director of your transition...

Rep. Steve Shurtleff has been tapped by his fellow House Democrats to lead the caucus again next year after serving in the same position this term. Thursday's vote was unanimous, as no other candidate was in the running. Shurtleff, who’s serving his sixth term in the House overall, says he’s honored to continue his role as House Minority Leader. “You know I take it as a vote that the Caucus believes I’m acting in the appropriate manner and serving the Caucus but more importantly serving the...

Its official: Sen. Andrew Hosmer of Laconia will not be returning to the New Hampshire Senate next year. The Laconia Democrat hoped to pick up votes in Wednesday’s recount, but Republican Harold French's margin of victory in the District 7 race actually increased by 4 votes.

U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen has been chosen to help plan the country’s 250 th birthday. Shaheen was appointed by Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid. The bipartisan commission, formally known as the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission, is made up of eight members of Congress, 16 private citizens and eight federal officials. Shaheen said in a statement that she’s honored to represent New Hampshire as the state “has a deep-seated history in American democracy.” Meetings will take place at...

We take a reflective look of New Hampshire politics and election day. The GOP reclaims the corner office for the first time in more than a decade and keeps its majorities in Concord. But Democrats sweep New Hampshire's federal races. Join us as we unpack that mixed bag.

One New Hampshire Senate contest and possibly two House races are headed for recounts. Democratic Sen. Andrew Hosmer of Laconia has requested a recount against Republican challenger Harold French, who is up by 13 votes. In House races, two Manchester races are in recount territory. Democrat Andrew Gregoire requested a recount, but updated numbers now put him one vote ahead. In Manchester ward 12, Republican Dick Marston is also asking for a recount. None of these recounts will revoke...

A state representative from Hooksett , Dick Marple , was arrested and re-elected on the same day. Republican State Rep Dick Marple was sitting outside the Hooksett polling place with his own campaign signs Tuesday morning when a Hooksett police officer recognized him. Marple had an outstanding bench warrant for his arrest because he had not shown up at an October court date. According to the Hooksett Police Department, Marple drove himself to the police station, where he turned himself in and...

After a long, well-financed, neck-and-neck campaign, the race for United States Senate in New Hampshire could be headed for a recount. Republican incumbent Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Democratic Gov . Maggie Hassan finished Election Day separated by 1,023 votes out of more than 738,420 cast, with Hassan holding the slight lead. Despite the razor thin margin, the two-term governor rallied her supporters outside the State House Wednesday morning. “It is clear that we have won, and I am proud to stand...

Tuesday was quite a night for American politics, and the same goes for New Hampshire, where the U.S. Senate race is still unresolved. NHPR's Senior Political Reporter Josh Rogers joined Morning Edition host Rick Ganley to discuss the latest in the Senate race, and to talk GOP control in the legislature, Governor-elect Chris Sununu and the Democratic wins in the races for U.S. House.

Riding an unexpectedly strong showing at the top of the ballot, Republicans appeared poised to hang on to their advantage in the New Hampshire state Senate. With 86 percent of the vote counted, Democrat Scott McGilvray led Republican state Rep. Joe Duarte by three percentage points in the Senate District 16 contest. If McGilvray hangs on, Democrats will pick up one seat, cutting the GOP’s Senate majority to 13-11.

Election results, re-caps, and races still outstanding! After a long and tumultuous election season, we'll sum up who won, who lost, and why. Also, what the future holds in terms of the issues and governance.

The failure of Sen. Kelly Ayotte and Gov. Maggie Hassan to negotiate a deal to limit spending by outside political groups guaranteed that their U.S. Senate race would be the most expensive election in New Hampshire history. And it is – by far. An unprecedented $127 million has been steered toward the campaign so far. Non-candidate groups account for roughly $96 million, or more than three times what the candidates themselves have spent.